China unveiled a new navy commander, a move that comes amid worsening tensions in the South China Sea and as the Philippines rejected China’s accusation that Manila was encroaching on Beijing’s territory.
Hu Zhongming (胡中明) was promoted to the rank of admiral at a ceremony in Beijing attended by Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) on Monday, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
The report marked the first time that Hu has been publicly referred to as commander of the People’s Liberation Army Navy. China’s military is known for providing few details on key personnel moves.
Photo: The Philippine Coast Guard via AP
The report did not say what is next for Hu’s predecessor, Dong Jun (董軍), who appeared as head of the navy in 2021. Dong was also attended the ceremony, a Xinhua photograph showed.
Hu previously served as the navy’s chief of staff, and before that captained a submarine. He joined a celebrated mission in 2002 in which a Chinese destroyer sailed around the world over four months.
Xinhua also said that Wang Wenquan (王文全) was the new political commissar of the Southern Theater Command, which oversees Chinese military activity in the South China Sea.
Wang was also promoted, to general.
The changes comes as China flexes its muscles in the South China Sea, which Beijing claims as its own, and in the Taiwan Strait.
Philippine military spokesman Medel Aguilar yesterday rejected China’s accusation that Manila was encroaching on Beijing’s territory.
It was the latest salvo amid rising tensions as the two have traded accusations in the past few months over a series of maritime run-ins, including China allegedly ramming a ship this month carrying the Philippines’ military chief.
“The Philippines is not provoking conflict,” Aguilar told state broadcaster the People’s Television Network. “We follow international law and we are only implementing our domestic law, meaning the limits of our territorial waters and exclusive economic zone, where we have sovereign rights.”
The comments came a day after China’s People’s Daily wrote that the Philippines had relied on US support to continually provoke China.
This “extremely dangerous” behavior has seriously harmed regional peace and stability, it said.
Aguilar said Philippine activities would not put vessels and seafarers in danger, instead accusing China of carrying out dangerous maneuvers that sometimes result in collisions at sea.
“They are the ones committing all the violations,” he added.
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